Monday 9 March 2015

#TourkickOff :: Garden by Jane Yates

About the Book:

Inspired by the classic novel The Secret Garden, Jane Yates introduces us to a steampunk world of bio-domes, robots and mysteries. Eleven-year-old Aberdeen is so used to being by herself that all she has to fill her thoughts are stories of mighty dragons and grand castles. Aberdeen’s world is soon thrown into disarray however; her parents murdered.
Having no choice, Aberdeen is sent to live with her uncle back on Earth where her fascination into her new surroundings begin to take hold. Untrusting of new people at first, it isn’t long before Aberdeen comes across 3 other children, and taking a risk, befriends them as she tries to adjust to her new home. And yet, along with Maisy, Peter and Lenard, Aberdeen comes across a riddle – a set of clues to reveal the hiding place of a lost manuscript. A manuscript that forces more questions than answers.
Oh, and there’s Frank too, Peter’s robot dog, who completes this special circle of friendship.
Garden is a journey of self-discovery, of trials and friendship. With adventure boundless, Jane Yates follows up her acclaimed Paradox Child trilogy with a new tale for young fans of steampunk and science fiction.

Buy Links:
Amazon Kindle UK I Amazon Kindle US I Smashwords

Jane Yates Top 10 Facts

1 – Jane first got into writing when she submitted a cartoon strip for publication at a local newspaper called Leys News. After finding encouragement from Sarah, the editor, Jane attended a short journalism course and embraced this new idea. The cartoon strip was about her (then) fat Spaniel dog called Mandy.

2 – Jane has Scottish ancestors, which influenced her decision into naming the central character of Garden – Aberdeen, in a nod towards them.

3 – Jane has three tattoos, including a large dragon on her back, which her son aptly named Midlife-Crisis.

4 – Jane is a firm believer in never becoming too old to try new things. She wrote a yearlong column for the Leys News entitled Life Begins at Fifty. For this, Jane tried a wide variety of activities: archery, indoor sky diving, sewing and writing a novel for National November Writing Month. Her first published novel Paradox Child was the result of this.

5 – Jane is also an artist, whose work has been featured in galleries as well as being bought by collectors. Some of Jane’s favourite artists are Vincent Van Gough, Picasso and Rembrandt. Jane also drew flower sketches for Garden, which in turn became the chapter headings in the book.

6 – Jane has three children, one of which, Emily, is a steampunk artist. It was Emily’s influence that steered Jane towards the increasing in popularity Steampunk genre. Jane recently co-hosted a Steampunk Tea Dance event in her hometown of Oxford for the release of Garden. There was dressing up in Victorian dress, Steampunk headgear as well as dance lessons, tea and cake.

7 – Jane is dyslexic, and a real advocate for supporting and believing in this to not stop children and teenagers following their dreams. There are two dyslexic characters in Garden for this very reason – it was important for Jane to show dyslexia in a more positive light. In fact, Peter has Numerosity – it has been recently defined as a sort of sixth sense. It is Jane’s understanding that very few books feature Numerosity, which highlights Garden’s unique vantage point.

8 – There are actually three mini stories within the story of Garden. Jane invented a device called the chapter machine, which not only tells stories and information, but records the stories of Aberdeen’s new found friend Maisy. A prince sets off to marry a princess, a tiger ponders the nature of humans and a poor father and daughter discover a magical ribbon. Did we mention flying fish, too?

9 – Jane is an accomplished academic. She has studied at various places and has qualifications in Archaeology and environmental science.

10 – Jane’s next book is called the Octopus Pirate, and is a steampunk time travel romp, influenced by the Fight Club film.

Garden - ART

Book Trailer:

About the Author:

Jane lives in the historic city of Oxford, England with her two spaniels. She works at the Pitt Rivers museum there too and is amazed and inspired by its wondrous array of objects. Being a museum of anthropology and world archaeology, Jane often finds herself influenced by its exhibitions. And indeed it has helped Jane write a trilogy for children – the Paradox Child series.
Jane is not only a mother, artist and storyteller, but dyslexic too, which only highlights her success even more. Jane refuses to allow the disorder to halt her dreams and continues to enjoy her favourite hobbies. Jane is a lover of steampunk, adventure and children’s stories, which often play a huge role in her own books.

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